Using Magic Words in your Magic Act

Guest Author - Kristin Peoples

Magic words were once part of many performances. They were just as important as your outfit or your props for your tricks. Most people look for some sort of magic words when they attend a magic show. Magic words will help you stand apart from some guy or girl doing a few tricks on stage to a true magician. Although most modern magicians do not use them as much anymore, those who work with kids use them. Those with the primary focus of parties and school assemblies may decide to use magic words as a part of their act to make them memorable.

Magic words were thought to have actually existed many centuries ago. It was thought that a certain word or group of words could change an outcome of an event or to even cure someone’s sickness. The word ‘Abracadabra’ was even made into a necklace to help keep evil away. The history of magical words is embedded in our culture so much so that audiences will come looking for them. You can even find magical words used in some of the older cartoons. If you do magic shows for kids, you can make up some fun ones that the kids will remember. They will try to do the tricks at home and use the words you use. If you have an adult crowd, you may not use as many magic words but use other things to signal the close or outcome of the trick.

Entertainment is certainly a critical piece of your magic act. You can use ‘Abracadabra’ or even ‘Ta Da’ within your act or you can make up a few of your own. It’s best to put together the list ahead of time and practice them along with your tricks. If you wait until the show to adlib based on your audience, you may get tongue tied and the show won’t be as sharp as you would want it to be.

Try a few words in your next performance and gauge the response from your audience. Even the skeptical magician may find that a few well placed words will jazz up your magic act. The more you get your audience focused on other parts of the act, the better the opportunity to do your tricks without having to worry about bad angles.